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Ahead of DeWine’s State of the State, A Look At How Ohio Has Fared Under GOP Control

Mar 05, 2019

From Employment to Health to Opportunity, Ohio Trails Nation on Many Indicators

Today, ahead of Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s first State of the State address, For Our Future Ohio (FOF-OH) is taking a look at how eight years of Republican control in Columbus has left Ohio workers, families, and communities behind.

“Eight years of Republican control in Columbus has put Ohio on the wrong track,” said For Our Future Ohio spokesperson Daniel van Hoogstraten. “Without a course correction from Governor Mike DeWine and his administration, Ohio will continue to fall behind the rest of the nation.”

Ahead of DeWine’s State of the State address, here’s a look at how Ohio trails the nation on several indicators:

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Ohio has the 11th highest rate of babies dying before their first birthday. There are also huge racial disparities in birth outcomes: In 2017, black infants in Ohio died at three times the rate of white infants.

Ohio children are experiencing lead poisoning at alarming rates.Children in Cleveland are poisoned by lead at a rate four times higher than the national average. In Toledo, “nearly 3,500 children in the city now are suffering the lifelong, permanent disabilities that come with lead poisoning.” Lead poisoning isn’t just impacting large Ohio cities: the Village of Sebring, Ohio recently experienced its own water crisis due to elevated levels of lead in drinking water.

Ohio is among the worst states for LGBTQ equality.Ohio falls far short of other states when it comes to LGBTQ equality. Notably, then-Attorney General Mike DeWine fought against marriage equality in a case that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Even though the Supreme Court ruled to make marriage equality the law of the land, DeWine continues to oppose same-sex marriage.

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For Our Future Ohio (FOF-OH) is a statewide coalition organization that builds progressive power through voter engagement and community organizing to create shared economic prosperity, strengthen public education, advance social and racial justice, and preserve the environment. FOF-OH’s founding partners are the AFL-CIO, National Education Association, AFSCME, American Federation of Teachers, and NextGen America.